JPS6394285A - Process head for electrophotographic device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To remove excess developer adhering to a developing electrode or the inwall of a passage without drying and solidifying it by supplying weak air for removing the excess developer to a developing part for a prescribed time after ending development, and then supplying strong air having high pressure for a prescribed time. CONSTITUTION:When a solenoid valve 120 is closed and the supply of the developer 136 is stopped, weak air is supplied during a time H1. Then the developer 136 is cut off, and in the latter period of the supplying period, strong air is supplied during a period H2 to remove excess developer stuck to the inwall of the developing room 98, the passage 103, the inwall of the passage 110, and a developing electrode 96. After separating the electrode 96 from the developing part of an electrophotographic film, strong air is supplied again for a time H4. Consequently, the excess developer stuck between the film and a developing room mask 90 by surface tension can be removed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a process head used in an electrophotographic apparatus to perform various processing on electrophotographic film.

[Conventional technology]

Write the image on the designated frame of the electrophotographic film 1. engineered,
Electrophotographic devices that can project or copy recorded images are known.

Further, a process head that is disposed in an electrophotographic apparatus and performs charging, exposure, development, etc. on an electrophotographic film is known from Japanese Patent Laid-open Nos. 59-100479 and 59-162580.

The process head disclosed in the above publication includes a charging/exposure section, a developing section, a drying section, and a fixing section. These parts are arranged adjacent to each other in the above order along the feeding direction of the electrophotographic film, and the arrangement pitch of each part is a constant pitch equal to the frame pitch of the electrophotographic film.

In the charging/exposure section, the electrophotographic film (corresponding to the - frame) located in this section is charged and then exposed to the image light of the original. As a result, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image pattern of the original is formed on the electrophotographic film. In the developing section, a liquid developer is applied to the electrophotographic film exposed in the charging/exposure section to visualize the electrostatic latent image.

In the drying section, dry air is blown onto the electrophotographic film moistened with the liquid developer to remove moisture. In the fixing section, the image is fixed on the electrophotographic film by a fixing lamp or the like.

In this process head, the liquid developer applied to the charged and exposed electrophotographic film remains in the developing section and the developer supply passage after development is completed. In order to remove this excess developer, the excess developer is drained using air.

However, with this method of removing excess developer using air, if the air pressure is low, that is, if the wind is weak, it is not possible to remove the excess developer that has adhered to the inner wall of the passage and the developing electrodes arranged in the developing section. do not have. It is possible to increase the air pressure in order to remove the excess developer that has adhered to the inner wall of this passage and the developing electrodes, etc. However, if the air pressure is increased, i.e., strong wind, the excess developer will not be removed and it will be faster. It will dry and solidify.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Taking the above facts into consideration, the present invention provides a process head for an electrophotographic device that can remove excess developer adhering to the developing electrode and the inner wall of the passage without drying or solidifying it. That is the purpose.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention is a process head for an electrophotographic device that presses an electrophotographic film against a main body of the process head, charges it and exposes it to light, and then develops it in a developing section to which a developer is supplied, and dries and fixes the developed image. Then, at the end of the development,
The method is characterized in that after a weak wind for removing excess developer is supplied to the developing section for a predetermined period of time, strong wind with strong pressure is further supplied for a predetermined period of time, and then strong wind is supplied again when the electrophotographic film is separated from the developing section. .

[Effect]

Therefore, in the present invention, an electrophotographic film is pressed against the main body of the process head, charged and exposed, and then developed in a developing section to which a developer is supplied, and the developed image is dried and fixed. Excess developer remains in the developing section to which this developer has been supplied, and is removed.

If necessary, weak wind is supplied for a specified period of time. Since this wind is weak, the excess developer does not dry out.

After this weak wind is supplied, excess developer still adheres to the inner wall of the developing section, such as the developing electrode, the supply passage, and the path, and strong wind is supplied to remove this excess developer. This makes it possible to remove excess developer adhering to the developing section, for example, the developing electrode or the inner wall of the passage. Further, strong wind is then supplied when the electrophotographic film is separated from the developing section. As a result, excess developer that has adhered to the gap between the electrophotographic film and the developing chamber mask due to surface tension is removed. This is because when the electrophotographic film is separated from the developing section, the surface tension that had been generated in the excess developer between the electrophotographic film and the developing chamber mask becomes weaker, and therefore the excess developer attached to this area becomes sticky. Since the adhesion force becomes weak, excess developer is removed by supplying strong wind in this state.

〔Example〕

(Electrophotographic Apparatus) FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of an electrophotographic apparatus for microfilm in which a process head according to this embodiment is disposed.

The electrophotographic device according to this embodiment has a camera function that photographs a document and records the image on an electrophotographic film, a league function that enlarges and projects the image recorded on the electrophotographic film on a screen, and an electrophotographic It also has a copy function that enlarges and copies images recorded on film onto copy paper.

The electrophotographic apparatus is constructed by integrating an electrophotographic apparatus main body 10 and a copying apparatus 12 in which a housing 11 also serves as a stand for the electrophotographic apparatus main body 10. In addition, if the copy function is not required, the electrophotographic device main body 1
It is also possible to use only 0 alone. The housing 14 of the electrophotographic Vz M main body 10 is composed of a portion 14A located on the left side and having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a portion 14B located on the right side and having a stepped top surface.
The internal spaces of the image parts 14A and 14B are communicated at the rear part.

A pass-through screen 16 is disposed on the outside of the housing 14A, closing the front opening of the housing and tilted slightly backward, and a document table 18 is disposed above. On the document table 18, there is a temporary document holder 20 that can be opened and closed.
A transparent glass plate 22 (see FIG. 2, which will be described later) is placed to cover the upper opening of the housing. Housing 14B
A cassette loading section 26 into which a cassette containing an electrophotographic film 24 (see FIG. 2 described later) is loaded is formed near the center of the upper part of the outer side of the cassette, and various types of electrophotographic devices are mounted on the front part of the upper part. A control keyboard 28 is provided for operations.

The housing 11 of the copying device 12 also has an opening 32 through which copied copy paper 30 (see FIG. 4 described later) is discharged.
is formed.

(Optical System of Electrophotographic Apparatus) FIGS. 2 to 4 show the optical system of an electrophotographic apparatus.

As shown in FIG. 2, the photographing optical system includes the document table 1
A document illumination lamp 36 illuminates a document 34, which is a subject set on the glass plate 22 of No. 8 with the document surface facing downward.
and a third mirror 38 on which the reflected light from the original 34 is incident.
, a second mirror 40 to which the reflected light from the third mirror 38 is incident, a first mirror 42 to which the reflected light from the second mirror 40 is incident, and an electrophotographic film to transfer the reflected light from the first mirror 42 The main lens 44 is connected on the surface of 24.

As shown in FIG. 3, the projection optical system includes a projection light source section 46 that illuminates the electrophotographic film 24, and a main lens 4 that connects the light that has passed through the electrophotographic film 24 to a first mirror 42.
4, a second mirror 40 into which the reflected light from the first mirror 42 is incident, and the screen 16 onto which the reflected light from the second mirror 40 is projected.

As shown in FIG. 4, the copying optical system includes a projection light source section 46, a main lens 44, a first mirror 42, a second mirror 40, and a space between the main lens 44 and the first mirror 42. a conversion lens 48 that is disposed on the first mirror 42 to slightly reduce the optical image focused on the first mirror 42; and a second mirror 40.
The copy mirror 52 reflects the reflected light from the copying machine 12 toward the copy paper 30 set on the exposure table 50 disposed in the copying apparatus 12.

The main lens 44, the first mirror 42, and the second mirror 40 are commonly used in the three optical systems described above. The main lens 44 and the first mirror 42 are fixedly disposed within the housing 14B of the electrophotographic apparatus main body 10, and the second mirror 40 is fixedly disposed within the housing 14A.

The third mirror 38, copy mirror 52, conversion lens 48 and screen 16 are selectively used.

The third mirror 38 and copy mirror 52 are movably disposed within the housing 14A of the electrophotographic apparatus main body 10, and the conversion lens 48 is movably disposed within the housing 14B so as not to interfere with other optical systems. ing. Since the screen 16 does not interfere with other optical systems, it is fixedly arranged as described above.

Further, the optical system of the electrophotographic apparatus includes a main lens 44 and a first lens.
A shutter controlled by an automatic exposure control device is disposed between the mirror 42 and the mirror 42 .

(Process Head) FIGS. 5 to 13 show an embodiment of a process head according to the present invention disposed in the electrophotographic apparatus.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the process head 5
4 is constructed by integrating a relatively flat, generally rectangular parallelepiped-shaped main body part 56 and a pair of legs 58 located at the lower part of the main body part 56, and is integrally molded with synthetic resin except for the attachments. has been done. The process head 54 is disposed between the main lens 44 and the electrophotographic film 24 shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, and as shown in FIG. It is attached to a frame 60 disposed within the housing 14B of the device main body IO.

The main lens 44, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7,
It is assembled into the lens barrel 62 and attached to the back surface of the process head 54. The electrophotographic film 24 is constructed by sequentially laminating a transparent conductive layer, an intermediate layer, and a photosensitive layer on a support such as polyethylene, and the photosensitive layer consists of a photoconductive layer and a protective layer that protects the photoconductive layer. It is configured. The electrophotographic film 24 is in the form of a long tape and is housed in a cassette case.

As shown in FIG. 6, the electrophotographic film 24 includes:
Blip marks 2 are placed on the top edge at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction.
4A is printed. The blip mark 24A is provided corresponding to one frame of an image recorded on the electrophotographic film 24. The electrophotographic film 24 is moved in the width direction of the process head 54 (in the left-right direction in FIG. ). Further, the transparent conductive layer of the electrophotographic film 24 can be electrically connected to the electrophotographic apparatus main body 10 when the cassette is loaded into the electrophotographic apparatus main body 10. It goes without saying that the electrophotographic film is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and any known film can be used.

The main body 56 of the process head 54 includes
As shown in the figure, charging/exposure sections 64 are sequentially arranged in the width direction.
, a developing section 66, a drying section 68, and a fixing section 70 are formed at a constant pitch corresponding to one frame interval of the electrophotographic film 24.

(Charging/Exposure Section) As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a charging/exposure chamber 72 is formed in the internal space on the back side of the front wall 74 of the process head 54. There is. The charging/exposure chamber 72 has an opening in the front wall 74 of the process head 54, and around this opening, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, there is a mask 76 that slightly protrudes from the front wall 74.
is formed. The opening shape of this mask 76 is made into a rectangular shape with a size corresponding to one frame of the electrophotographic film 24. The charging/exposure chamber 72 includes a corona unit 78,
A proximity electrode 80 and a mask electrode 82 are provided.

As shown in FIG. 5, the corona unit 78 includes a corona wire 84 and a synthetic resin holder 86 that holds the corona wire 84, and is inserted into the process head 54 from above. The proximal electrodes 80 are made of narrow metal plates and are arranged on both sides of the corona wire 840. The mask electrode 82 is formed by bending a metal plate into a rectangular shape, and is disposed near the opening of the front wall 74.

The corona wire 84 is connected to a high voltage power source and the proximal electrode 80
and mask electrode 82 are electrically connected. Normally, the proximal electrode 80 is directly connected to the ground, and the mask electrode 82 is connected to the ground via an electrical resistance, but different bias voltages may be applied to each from an external power source.

As shown in FIG. 7, a film cooling air outlet 88 is opened in the charging/exposure chamber 72, and cold air is supplied by an air pump 89 through a conduit 87. The process head 5 is assembled into the lens barrel 62 as described above.
The main lens 44 attached to the back surface of the mask 76 has its front axis aligned with the center of the aperture of the mask 76.

(Developing Section) The developing section 66 includes, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6,
A mask 90 is formed, and the mask 90 covers the upper frame 9.
0A and left and right frames 90B and 90C stand up from the surface of the recess 92 formed in the front wall 74. The lower side of the lower frame 90D of the mask 90 stands up from the front wall 74. Further, the lower frame 90D has left and right frames 90B, 90 at both ends.
It further extends in the left-right direction from the connecting portion with C.

The protruding height of the mask 90 is set to be at the same level as the mask 76.

The opening width of the mask 90 is slightly shorter than the opening width of the mask 76. In addition, the opening height of the mask 90,
That is, the distance between the inner walls of the upper frame 90A and the lower frame 90D is
The inner wall of the lower frame 90D is located lower than that of the mask 76, and is lengthened accordingly.

A developing electrode 96 is disposed within the opening of the mask 90 and supported by a rear wall 94, as shown in FIG. Developing electrode 96 is connected to a bias power source. The surface of the developing electrode 96 is located slightly inside from the end surface of the mask 90, and a space surrounded by the developing electrode 96 and the inner wall of the mask 90 is defined as a developing chamber 98. The upper and lower parts of the developing electrode 96 are opened, and are provided with a developer/squeeze air inlet 100 and a developer/squeeze air outlet 102, respectively.
It is said that

The wall surface of the developing chamber mask 90 is smoothed to improve the efficiency of liquid drainage.

The developer/squeeze air inlet 100 communicates with a passage 104 formed in the internal space of the process head 54 . The passage 104 has a developer supply port 106 and a squeeze air supply port 108 opened on the back side of the process head 54.
It is communicated with.

Further, the developer/squeeze air outlet 102 is communicated with a passage 110 formed in the internal space of the process head 54 . The passage 110 communicates with a developer/squeeze air outlet 112 opened on the back side of the process head 54.

As shown in Figure 0, both sides of the left and right frames 90B and 90C of the mask 90 communicate with a passageway 116 that is constituted by the internal space of the process head 54.

The supply port 106 is connected to a conduit 122 via a solenoid valve 120 on the way.
．． It is connected to a developer tank 126 at 124 . The developer tank 126 is located above the solenoid valve 120. The developer tank 126 is connected to a developer pump 130 driven by a motor 128 through a conduit 132. The developer platen pump 130 is disposed in the developer bottle 134. The developer bottle 134 contains a developer 136 in which toner particles are dispersed in a solvent.

The pipe line 124 connecting the electromagnetic valve 120 and the developer tank 126 is branched in the middle, and a developer bottle 134
A return conduit 138 opens to. Further, a return pipe 140 that opens into the developer bottle 134 is connected to the developer tank 126 .

The squeezing air supply port 108 is connected through a conduit 142 to an air pump 144 for pressure squeezing. A developer bottle 1 is provided in the developer/squeeze air outlet 112.
A return conduit 146 opening to 34 is connected thereto.

This squeeze air pump 144 is capable of supplying two levels of pressurized air: weak air and strong air, as shown in FIG. This switching is for pressurized squeeze air pump 1.
It may be formed so that two levels of pressure can be supplied by switching the voltage supplied to 44.

Pressurized air is supplied by the pressurized squeezing air pump 144 when the solenoid valve 120 is closed and the supply of the developer 136 is stopped. At the beginning of the supply, the time H shown in FIG.
1. Specifically, l for the l cm width of the space surrounded by the inner wall of the mask 90 and the developing electrode 96, that is, the developing chamber 98.
1-3 seconds (preferably 1.5 seconds) at a flow rate of f/min
Light wind is provided. As a result, the developer 136 is drained, and the excess developer remaining in the developing chamber 98 and the passages 104 and 110 is removed.

Also, since the wind is weak, excess developer does not dry out quickly.

After this, in the latter half of the supply, strong wind is supplied for 0.2 to 2 seconds (preferably 1.0 seconds) at a flow rate of 41/min for a time of Hz, specifically, 1 cI 1 width of the developing chamber 98. As a result, the developing chamber 9 could not be removed when supplying weak wind.
8 inner wall, passage 104, passage 110 inner wall, developing electrode 96
Excess developer attached to the surface is removed.

In addition, the strong wind supply time H2 is changed to the weak wind supply time H2 to prevent excess developer from drying quickly due to strong winds and further increasing the adhesion amount.
, is set shorter.

After supplying strong wind, weak wind is supplied for a time H3 as shown in FIG. 16, specifically for 0.2 to 1 second (preferably 0.5 seconds). Due to this supply, passage 10 cannot be removed during strong wind supply.
4. Excess developer adhering to the inner wall of the passage 110 is removed.

After the weak wind is supplied, the strong wind is again applied for a period of time H when the electrophotographic film is separated from the developing section, that is, just before the solenoid 234 that presses the electrophotographic film, which will be described later, is activated.
It is designed to be supplied for 4 hours. Specifically, this strong wind is supplied for 0.2 to 1 sec (preferably 0.5 sec). This supply removes excess developer that has adhered due to surface tension between the electrophotographic film and the developing chamber mask 9o. This is because when the electrophotographic film is separated from the developing section, the surface tension that has been generated in the excess developer between the electrophotographic film and the developing chamber mask 90 becomes weaker, and the excess developer that has adhered to the developing chamber mask 9o becomes weaker. 11(B), the suction opening 118 is suction trapped by the conduit 148. Also, at the bottom of the suction trap 150 is a return pipe 1 that opens to the developer bottle 134.
56 are connected. The suction trap 150 is provided with a valve 158 that can close the return pipe line 156 at a connection with the return pipe line 156, and the valve 158 is moved up and down by a solenoid 162 via a shaft 160. ing.

Note that the process head 54 is shown tilted in FIG. 11 because it is tilted with respect to the horizontal plane so that the optical axis of the optical system is perpendicular to the screen 16 arranged tilted. .

(Drying section) The drying section 68 includes, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6,
A frame wall 164 is formed. The frame wall 164 is the upper frame 1
64A and left and right frames 164B and 164C, and there is no lower frame. The left frame 164B is continuous from the right end of the lower frame 90D of the mask 90, and is connected to the upper frame 164.
It stands up from the front wall 74 together with A. Further, the cloth frame 164C rises from a front wall recess 168 that is depressed from the front wall 74 in a step-like manner.

7 and 12 between the left and right frames 164B and 164c.
As shown in the figure, a wall 170 whose surface is located slightly inward from the end face of the frame wall 164 is formed, and furthermore, recesses 172 are formed on both sides of this wall 170. The bottom surface of the recess 172 is located at a position protruding from the wall surface of the front wall recess 16B. A space surrounded by the frame wall 164, wall 170, and recess 172 is a drying chamber 174. The inner width of the frame wall 164 is wider than the opening width of the mask 90. Also, the lower surface (inner surface of the frame) of the upper frame 164A
is located above that of the mask 90 of the developing section 66.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 12, the upper frame 164A
The lower part is opened and serves as a hot air outlet 176. As shown in FIG. 12, the hot air outlet 176 communicates with a passage 178 formed in the internal space of the process head 54. The passage 178 is a passage 1 communicating with a hot air supply port 180 opened on the back side of the process head 54.
A temperature sensor 182 is disposed at 78 . The hot air supply port 180 is connected to the heater 179 and the air pump 1 through a conduit 177.
It is connected to 81.

(Standard Section) As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the fixing section 70 is formed between the cloth frame 164C of the frame wall 164 and the front wall 74 located at the right end.

The fixing section 70 has a frame section 184 formed of a lower frame and left and right frames at a position further depressed from the front wall recess 168. A transparent glass plate 186 is provided in the frame portion 184.
is fitted, and the space in front of the glass plate 186 is used as a fixing chamber 188.

As shown in FIG. 13, a nixenon lamp 192 and a reflecting plate 194 are disposed in a space 190 of the process head 54 formed on the back side of the glass plate 186. A cooling air outlet 196 is opened in the space 190,
Cold air is supplied from an air pump 195 via a conduit 193. The space 190 and the fixing chamber 188 communicate with each other above the glass plate 186.

(Prip sensor) As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the process head 5
4, a blip sensor 196 is installed at the left end of the front wall 74.
is installed. The blip sensor 196 detects the electrophotographic film 2 being moved along the front surface of the process head 54.
It is located at a height where the blip mark 24A of No. 4 passes through, and when the blip mark 24A of No. 4 passes, the light from the light source for the sensor placed oppositely with the electrophotographic film 24 in between is blocked. It is designed to sense.

(Film Holding Mechanism) As shown in FIGS. 7 and 14, a presser vi 198 is disposed in front of the front wall 74 of the process head 54. As shown in FIG. 15, the presser holder 198 has a rectangular through hole 200 that is slightly smaller in size than the opening shape of the mask 76 formed in the charging/exposure section 64.

The temporary presser foot 198 is arranged so that the through hole 200 corresponds to the mask 76.

As shown in FIG. 15A (a perspective view of the presser foot seen from the opposite side of FIG. 15), the presser foot 198 has a transparent 7L 20
Claws 202 and 204 that protrude toward the process head 54 are formed at the upper and lower parts of the end on the side where the number 0 is formed. The claws 202 and 204 have inclined surfaces 202A and 204A on their inner surfaces facing each other.
As shown in the figure, upper and lower claws 202.
204 is equal to the width of the electrophotographic film 24.
(Strictly speaking, it is slightly wider than the width of the electrophotographic film 24)
A cylindrical portion 206 is formed protruding from the tip of the claw 204. The claws 202, 204 are attached to the front wall 74 of the process head 54 shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 14.
It is possible to fit into holes 208 and 210 formed in.

A cylindrical portion 212 is formed protrudingly on the back surface of the presser foot Fil 9 B facing the process head 54, and a notch 214A formed at one end of the arm 214 is engaged with this cylindrical portion 212. . A stopper 212A is fixed to the tip of the cylindrical portion 212 to prevent the notch 214A from being pulled out. A boss portion 214B is formed at the other end of the arm 214. A shaft 216 is fixed to the boss portion 214B.

The shaft 216 is rotatably inserted into and supported by a stand 218 erected on the frame 60 to which the process head 54 is attached, and its lower end protrudes from the back surface of the frame 60 . A third lever 220 is fixed to the lower end of the shaft 216.

A pin 222 is fixed to the tip of the first lever 220.

On the other hand, a shaft 224 is vertically provided on the back surface of the frame 60. An intermediate portion of a second lever 226 is rotatably supported on the shaft 224 . The bin 222 is engaged with a notch 226A formed at one end of the second lever 226. A long hole 22 formed at the other end of the second lever 226
6B is a tension coil spring 2 that urges the second levers 226 in opposite directions and elastically supports the second levers 226.
28, 230 are locked at one end.

The other end of the tension coil spring 228 is locked to a pin 232 vertically installed on the back surface of the frame 60, and the other end of the tension coil spring 230 is connected to a pull-type solenoid 234 attached to the back surface of the frame 60. It is locked to plunger 234A.

The presser foot 198 is held at a distance from the process head 54 when the solenoid 234 is not energized. In this state, as shown in FIG. 14, the cylindrical portion 206 of the presser foot 198 is fitted into the hole 210 formed in the process head 54 and is supported.

When solenoid 234 is energized, plunger 234A
is actuated in the direction of arrow A, and the tension coil spring 228.23
0 is stretched against the force.

As a result, the second lever 226 is rotated in the direction of arrow B about the shaft 224, so the first lever 220 is rotated in the direction of arrow C via the bin 222, and the shaft 216 is rotated in the same direction. . By rotating the shaft 216, the 7-m 214
is rotated in the direction of the arrow mark and presses the presser plate 198 in the direction of the arrow E.

The presser plate 198 is moved in the direction of arrow E with the cylindrical portion 206 guided by the hole 210 to press the electrophotographic film 24 into contact with the end surfaces of the mask 76, 90 and the frame 164. When the temporary presser foot 198 is moved, if the position of the electrophotographic film 24 is misaligned in the height direction, the claw 202.
The inclined surfaces 202A and 204A of the electrophotographic film 204 act to push down the upper edge of the electrophotographic film 24 or push up the lower edge thereof.

When the presser foot 198 presses the electrophotographic film 24 against the process head 54, the claws 202 and 204
are fitted into holes 208, 210 and accurately positioned in process head 54. Also presser temporary 19B
In this state, the electrophotographic film 24 is elastically pressed by the action of the tension coil springs 228 and 230.

When the solenoid 234 is demagnetized, the tension coil spring 22
8, the second lever 226 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow B, the arm 214 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow B, the notch 214A presses the retaining ring 212A, and the retaining plate 198
is moved in the opposite direction of arrow E.

(Effect of Example) Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained.

When the power switch of the electrophotographic device is turned on, the first
The cassette loading section 26 shown in the figure is raised, and a cassette containing the electrophotographic film 24 can be loaded. After the cassette is loaded into the cassette loading section 26, when the cassette loading section 26 is manually pushed down to its original position, the cassette loading section 26 is restrained at that position. In this state, the electrophotographic film 24 is positioned as shown in FIG. 14, and can be moved along the front surface of the process head 54 by driving a film moving motor (not shown).

When recording the image of the document 34 shown in FIG. 2 on the electrophotographic film 24, a film moving motor (not shown) is driven to freely select i! from among the frames that have not been recorded yet. The translated predetermined frame is positioned in front of the mask 76 of the charging/exposure section 64. This operation is performed by specifying a predetermined frame using the control keyboard 28 shown in FIG. It is controlled by

FIG. 16 shows a time chart in the case where, after the predetermined -9 is aligned and photographed as described above, consecutive photographs are taken for each frame following this frame. ing. In the process head 54, the charging/exposure section 6
When the frame located at 4 is charged and exposed, the developing section 6
6. The pieces located in the drying section 68 and the fixing section 70 are subjected to different processes simultaneously.
The following description will focus on position -9 in which the photographing button is pressed at position (1) in FIG. 16 and photographing is started.

The document 34 can be photographed by selecting the camera mode by operating a button on the control keyboard 28. Simultaneously with this operation, the developing electrode 96 of the developing section 66 is energized to apply a bias voltage, and the drying chamber 174 The heater 179 that heats the air blown is energized and generates heat, and the capacitor of the xenon lamp 192 of the fixing section 70 is energized and charged. These continue while the camera mode is selected.

When the photographing button on the control keyboard 28 is pressed, the corona wire 84 of the charging/exposure section 64 is energized and a high voltage is applied, generating corona discharge between the proximal electrode 8° and the mask electrode 82. As a result, the mask 76
The surface of the photosensitive layer of the electrophotographic film 24 located within the aperture frame is electrically charged.

Note that when the shooting button is pressed, the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is activated from the previous step.
The electrophotographic film 24 is pressed by a presser foot Fi 198 and pressed against each end face of the mask 76 and 90 of the process head 54 and the frame wall 164. Presser plate 19
8 has a through hole 200 formed in a portion corresponding to the mask 76, but since this through hole 200 is smaller than the opening of the mask 76, the electrophotographic film 24 located at the end surface of the mask 76 is It is pressed by the presser plate surface around the through hole 200. Therefore, since the electrophotographic film 24 is reliably brought into close contact with the end face of the mask 76, the charging range is precisely regulated within the opening range of the mask 76.

In addition, a mask electrode 82 provided in the charging/exposure chamber 72
is held at approximately the same potential as the charged potential of the electrophotographic film 24, so that the peripheral edge of the frame of the electrophotographic film 24 located in the opening of the mask 76 is also charged to a value close to the potential of the center of the frame. , electrophotographic film 24-9
The entire area is charged uniformly. By appropriately selecting the value of a resistor (not shown) interposed and electrically connected between the ground and the mask electrode 82, or by
By applying a bias voltage from an external power supply (not shown) to mask 1! Pole 82 can be maintained at a potential approximately equal to the charging potential of electrophotographic film 24.

After the photographing button is pressed at the (1) position, the document illumination lamp 36 is turned on after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, and the document 34 placed on the temporary glass 22 of the document table 18 is illuminated. Further, after a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the button is pressed, the current supply to the corona wire 84 is stopped, and the corona discharge stops.

At the same time as the power supply to the corona wire 84 is stopped, a shutter (not shown) (indicated by a symbol in FIG. 16) is opened, and the document is placed on the document table 18 by the optical system shown in FIG. Image light from the original 34 is irradiated onto the electrophotographic film 24 . Furthermore, at the same time, an automatic exposure control device (not shown) (indicated by reference numeral B in FIG. 16) starts integrating the amount of light.

On the other hand, after a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the button is pressed, the first
The motor 12B shown in FIG. 1A is driven to start the operation of the developer pump 130, and the developer bottle 13 is activated.
The developer 136 in the developer tank 126 is pumped up into the developer tank 126. The developer 136 descends from the developer tank 126 under its own weight, passes through the pipe 124, and heads for the process head 54, but at this time, the Nf61 valve 120 is still closed, so the developer bottle is removed from the return pipe 13B. 134
be returned to. In addition, the developer 13 in the developer tank 126 is
6 rises, the developer 136 is returned to the developer bottle 134 from the return line 140.

In this way, the developer 136 circulates between the developer bottle 134 and the developer tank 126 and waits at a position in front of the valve surface of the solenoid valve 120 until the solenoid valve 120 is opened. This circulation stirs the developer 36 in the developer bottle 134.

When the cumulative value of the light amount of the automatic exposure control device (B) reaches the set value, the cumulative value is stopped, the shutter (A) is simultaneously closed, and the document illumination lamp 36 is turned off. At this point, the exposure process is completed, and one frame of the electrophotographic film 24 located in the opening of the mask 76 becomes static as the charge on the angry light layer decreases in accordance with the image pattern of the original 34. An electric latent image is formed. The automatic exposure control device (B) corrects factors that cause fluctuations in image density, such as variations in the 4 degrees of background of the original 34 and fluctuations in the voltage applied to the original illumination lamp 36, so that proper exposure is always performed. . At this time, when a predetermined time has elapsed since the button was pressed and all processing steps for other frames have been completed, the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is immediately demagnetized. When the solenoid 234 is demagnetized at the (IA) position in FIG. 16, the holding plate 198 is separated from the electrophotographic film 24.

At the same time that the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is turned off, the suction trap 150 shown in FIG. 11(B) is turned off.
The solenoid 162 is energized and operated, and the shaft 16
0 through the valve 158 is raised and - the return line 1''5
6 is in communication with the suction trap 150. As a result, the suction trap 150 was removed during the previous development/squeeze process (described later).
The developer 136 that was captured in the developer bottle 134 is returned to the developer bottle 134.

After the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is demagnetized,
After a predetermined period of time has elapsed, a film moving motor (not shown) (indicated by C in FIG. 16) is driven, and the electrophotographic film 24 is moved one frame to the right in FIG. As a result, the frame located in the charging/exposure section 64 is moved to the developing section 66. -9 movement of the electrophotographic film 24 is
As in the previous case, control is performed by the prep sensor 196 detecting the blip mark 24A.

After a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the film movement motor (C) is stopped, the film presser i is moved to position (IB) in FIG.
The +a solenoid 234 is energized and the electrophotographic film 24 is pressed against the process head 54 by the holding plate 198 . At the same time, the solenoid 162 of the suction trap 150 is demagnetized, the return squiff 7 conduit 156 is blocked, and the suction #! Air pump 15 for #
4 is actuated, and further 1 opens the magnetic valve 120.

Electric! ■When the valve 120 is opened, the developer 136 flows through the pipe 12.
2 and reaches the process head 54, and flows into the developing chamber 98 from the developer/squeeze air inlet 100 of the developing section 66. The toner particles dispersed in the developer 136 are e
, and as it flows down the developing chamber 98, it adheres to the charged portion of the electrophotographic film 24, e.
Visualizes the electrostatic latent image. Developer 1 flowing down the developing chamber 98
36 is returned from the developer/squeeze air outlet 102 to the developer bottle 134 through a return line 146.

The developer 136 supplied from the developer tank 126 to the conduit 124 is routed through each conduit so that part of it is returned to the developer bottle 134 from the return conduit 138 and the rest goes to the electromagnetic valve 120. The diameter etc. are set.

The developer 136 flowing down the developing chamber 98 is
Since the electrophotographic film 24 is pressed against the end surface of the mask 90 at 8, the conduit 148 is removed from the left and right frame portions 90B, 9 of the mask 90 by 154 that enters the gap between the end surface of the mask 90 and the electrophotographic film 24. The liquid is sucked into the suction trap 150 and captured.

The developer pump 130 is operated by the motor 12 after a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is energized.
8 is stopped and the operation is stopped, but the solenoid valve 12
0 remains open thereafter. The developer 136 is transferred from the developer tank 126 to the process head 5 by gravity.
Since the developer 136 is supplied to the developing chamber 98, even if the operation of the developer pump 130 is stopped, the supply of the developer 136 to the developing chamber 98 is continued. In this way, the developer bump 1
Since the supply of the developer 136 is maintained at mVt even after the developer 30 is stopped, it is possible to minimize exposure blurring due to the vibration of the developer pump 130 during the n-light of the next frame.

When the solenoid valve 120 is opened and a predetermined time has elapsed, the solenoid valve 120 is closed and the supply of the developer 136 to the developing chamber 98 is stopped. At the same time, the pressurized squeeze air pump 144 shown in FIG. The attached developer 136 is blown off and drained. The blown-off developer 136 is returned to the developer bottle 134 from the developer/squeeze air outlet 102 through a return pipe 146.

As already explained, the supply of pressurized air to the developing chamber 98, that is, the air blowing, is carried out with a weak breeze during the time 11 shown in FIG. The developer 136 is supplied, and the developer 136 is drained. Furthermore, since the wind is weak, image deterioration due to high-speed blowdown is prevented. After time H+Il, strong wind is supplied for time H,
Excess developer adhering to the developing chamber 98 and the passages 104 and 110 is removed. Since this supply time H2 is set shorter than the weak wind supply time H1, the developer does not dry or solidify. After supplying strong wind for a time H2, weak wind is supplied again for a time H3. As a result, excess developer adhering to the inner walls of the passages 104 and 110 is removed without being solidified.

After the weak wind is supplied, strong wind is supplied again for a time H1 when the electrophotographic film is separated from the developing section.This removes the excess developing material that has adhered between the electrophotographic film and the mask due to surface tension. agent is removed.

The air blowing is controlled by the successful charging/exposure process that was started when the photographing button was pressed at position (n) in Fig. 16, and the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is demagnetized at position (nA) in Fig. 16. Then, after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, the drive of the film movement motor (C) is started and simultaneously stopped,
The developing/squeezing process is completed.

Note that during development, the presence of the development electrode 96 makes it possible to obtain an image free of edge effects. Further, since a bias voltage is applied to the developing electrode 96, blurring of the image is prevented.

When the drive of the film moving motor (C) is stopped, the electrophotographic film 24 has been moved four frames to the right in FIG. There is. After a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the film moving motor (C) is stopped, the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is energized at position (IIB) in FIG. 16, and at the same time, the air pump 181 shown in FIG. 12 is activated. Ru. When the air pump 181 operates, hot air heated by the heater 179 flows from the hot air outlet 176 of the drying section 68 to the drying chamber 174.
The developer 136 is blown out and dried. The operation of the air pump 181 is controlled by the frame charging and exposure process that is started when the photographing button is pressed at the (I [[) position in FIG. 16, and the film holding mechanism is activated at the (mA) position i in FIG. Solenoid 234 is demagnetized and stopped at the same time,
The drying process is completed.

Note that the air supplied to the drying chamber 174 is supplied to the temperature sensor 1.
82 and if the temperature is outside the predetermined range, the control keyboard 28
A message to that effect is displayed, and if the temperature is off to the high temperature side, the power supply to the heater 179 is immediately stopped.

In addition, in the above example, solenoid 2 of the film holding mechanism
34, and the drying air pump 18 is activated only when pressing the electrophotographic film 24 against the process head 54.
Although the air pump 181 is operated, the air pump 181 may be continuously operated from the start.

After the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is demagnetized at the (IffA) position in FIG.
) is driven, and the frame located in the drying section 68 is moved to the fixing section 70. After the drive of the film moving motor (C) is stopped, the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism is energized at the position (IIIB) in FIG. 16, and at the same time,
The air pump 195 shown in FIG. 13 is operated to supply cold air to the space 190 of the fixing section 70. This cold air passes through the upper part of the glass plate 186 from the space 190 and reaches the fixing chamber 188 .

After a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the solenoid 234 of the film holding mechanism was energized, the xenon lamp 192 emits light.
The toner particles are fused and fixed to the surface of the electrophotographic film 24, completing the fixing process.

Air pump 19 removes vaporized substances and dissipated substances generated during fixing.
Since the particles are blown off by the cold air supplied by the filter 5, they do not adhere to the surface of the glass plate 186.

By completing the above steps, recording of the image on the electrophotographic film is completed.

In the apparatus of this embodiment, after the frame located in the charging/exposure section 64 where the photographing button has been pressed and photographing has started is moved eight frames from the developing section 66, the solenoid 2 of the film holding mechanism
Successful imaging becomes possible after a predetermined period of time has elapsed since 4 was excited. From this time until a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the air pump 144 for pressurizing and squeezing the developing section 66 finishes blowing weak air, if the shooting button is pressed for consecutive successful shootings. , are processed as continuous shooting, and by continuing this, the processing progresses as shown in FIG. 16.

Note that if the shooting button is not pressed within the above-mentioned period, or if the series of shooting is manually terminated from the control keyboard 28, the strong air blowing by the pressure squeeze air pump 144 will stop due to a reset. is,
Subsequent drying and fixing are also processed by a timer.

The electrophotographic film 24 on which the original image has been recorded as described above can be projected by selecting the reader mode. In the electrophotographic apparatus of this embodiment, a cassette is loaded by the same operation as described above. In this state, the leader mode is automatically selected (the third mirror 38 has been moved from the position shown in Figure 2 to another position). At the same time that the film stops at the charging/exposure section 64, the light source of the projection light source section 46 shown in FIG. , an electrophotographic film 24 is applied to the screen 16 by the optical system shown in FIG.
The image is enlarged and projected.

Note that at the same time that the light source is turned on, the air pump 89 shown in FIG.
4 is cooled so that it does not reach a high temperature, and defocusing due to thermal deformation is prevented.

In addition, in reader mode, the control keyboard 28
By operating the button, the electrophotographic film 24 can be continuously framed and the projected images can be viewed continuously in a short period of time.

In this case, the shutter (A) is closed when the electrophotographic film 24 is moved to prevent flickering due to an afterimage phenomenon.

When the copy button on the control keyboard 28 is pressed while the image is being projected onto the screen 16 as described above, the copy mode is selected and the copy mirror 52 is moved, and the optical system shown in FIG.
The image projected on 6 is recorded on copy paper 30.

Note that in the above embodiment, the developer 1 in the developer bottle 134
36 is stored in the developer tank 126 and then the electromagnetic valve 120 is opened to supply the developer to the developing section. may be supplied directly. In this case, a detector (not shown) may similarly detect the developer branched from the intermediate portion of the pipe line 132 and returned through the return pipe line 140, and the voltage supplied to the motor 128 may be controlled.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, the present invention is for an electrophotographic device in which an electrophotographic film is pressed against a process head main body, charged and exposed, and then developed in a developing section to which a developer is supplied, and the developed image is dried and fixed. In the process head, when the development is completed, ``a weak wind for removing excess developer is supplied to the developing section for a predetermined time, and then a strong wind with strong pressure is supplied for a predetermined time, and then the electrophotographic film is removed from the developing section. Since it is characterized by supplying strong air again at the time of separation, it has an excellent effect of being able to remove excess developer adhering to the developing electrode without drying or solidifying it.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of an electrophotographic device;
The figure is a perspective conceptual diagram showing the photographing optical system of an electrophotographic device.
FIG. 4 is a perspective conceptual diagram showing a projection optical system, FIG. 4 is a perspective conceptual diagram showing a copying optical system, and FIG. 5 is a process head according to an embodiment of the present invention installed in the electrophotographic apparatus shown in FIG. 1. Figure 6 is a front view, and Figure 7 is an exploded perspective view of the same.
Fig. 8 is a view taken along the line ■-■ of Fig. 6, Fig. 9 is a view taken along the line IX-IX of Fig. 6, and Fig. 1O is a view taken along the line IX-IX of Fig. 6. 7) X-X '49 arrow view, Figure 11 (A)
, (B) An explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the H10 process head developing section and other equipment, FIG. 12 is a view taken along the x-xII line in FIG. 6, and FIG. 13 is a view taken along the xm-xm line in FIG. 6. Arrow view, 14th
The figure is a schematic side view showing the positional relationship between the process head and the presser foot, Figure 15 is a perspective view showing the film presser mechanism installed in the process head, and Figure 15A is a partial view of the parts shown in Figure 15 on the opposite side. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a time chart in the camera mode of the electrophotographic apparatus. 24... Electrophotographic film, 54... Process head, 56... Main body, 66... Developing section, 136... Developer, 144... Pressure squeeze air pump.

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A process head for an electrophotographic device that presses an electrophotographic film against the main body of the process head, charges it and exposes it to light, and then develops it in a developing section to which a developer is supplied, and dries and fixes the developed image. , at the end of the development, a weak wind for removing excess developer is supplied to the developing section for a predetermined period of time, and then a strong wind with strong pressure is further supplied for a predetermined period of time, and then, when the electrophotographic film is separated from the developing section, strong wind is supplied again. A process head for an electrophotographic device characterized by: